Srinagar, Aug. 19 -- Kashmir's Karewas have been cut open for years, one excavation after another, as if these ancient terraces were piles of earth waiting to be taken away.

Now the scale has a number.

A government-led inspection has found that more than 18 lakh metric tons of clay, sand and gravel were excavated from Karewa sites in Budgam and Pulwama between 2019 and 2024. The findings are before the National Green Tribunal after a petition challenged the mining activity.

The number is startling. The larger story is what it tells us about the way Kashmir has approached development.

A Karewa becomes valuable when it can supply material for a road, a building or some other project. Its agricultural value often receives far less attent...